Vegan Fire and Spice

I made the Thai Tofu and the Spicy Peanut Sauce.  YUM.  This was the second time I made this.  I always add extra vegetables.  And there is enough to take to work tomorrow.

Vegan Mac and Cheez

Well, I had some leftover greens and wanted some ersatz comfort food.  SO... I made Mac & Shews .  Secret ingredient is sauerkraut.  I never thought I would find any use for that strange food item, but this smells delicious baking in the oven, and I invited Chris to come and partake.  Hopefully he will stop by.  Anyhow, give it a try.  I made the greens with the same recipe I used Sunday night, and I know they will be delicious.

The only negative I can think of, is, I need a much larger food processor.  Mine is tiny, and the cashews/broth/sauerkraut BARELY fit in my blender.  I don't think I got the sauce as smooth as I would like it to be.  But it did look creamy when I added it to the roux and stirred everything up.  Here's hoping!

Update:  It was nearly perfect!  I would have liked the sauce to be just a bit creamier, but even with the nutritional yeast, it tasted fabulous!

First tries from Sexy Vegan

I may have mentioned that my son Chris gave me The Sexy Vegan Cookbook for Christmas.  We finally got around to making something from it, well sort of.

Here's the finished product (food porn coming up!)

Chris helped me with the entire dinner from start of the seitan to the finishing touches on the greens.  We used the Simmered Seitan from Isa Does It, the breading recipe Colonel Schmolonel from The Sexy Vegan Cookbook, the Punk Rock Chickpea Gravy from Vegan With A Vengeance, a mashed potato recipe similar to that in The Sexy Vegan Cookbook and the greens recipe from The Sexy Vegan Cookbook.  The food was as delicious as it looks in the picture, perhaps more.  Amy thought I put too much salt in the greens, so I'll back off of that a little next time.  But I do like the touch of putting some red pepper flakes in the greens.  The greens had just a hint of spiciness and were cooked perfectly, not too wilted.  Chris really got into using the mixer to make the mashed potatoes.  They turned out really well. (I didn 't use the amounts in the cookbook, just the basic ingredients; after all, I've made these before.)  The Punk Rock Chickpea Gravy has become a favorite of mine, though I'm always having to leave one or two ingredients out because, well, I forget to get stuff at the store.  Next weekend will herald a MAJOR grocery shopping day.  Just saying.

Chris wants to do some more cooking, and I for one want to encourage him.  I enjoy his company in the kitchen and I have also told him chicks dig a dude who can cook. (Now to get Marcus to do some vegan cooking... he is going to make Nirvana Enchilada Casserole some time soon, I think.  Shucks that would make enough food to feed one person for a week.  Of course, on the day of the Chargers game, we snarfed it all down in no time flat.  But...

I think you could make Fried Seitan out of just about any decent seitan recipe.  But I do want to try the Sexy Vegan seitan recipe some time soon.  Wow.  I am so satisfied by this meal, I decided NOT to bake chocolate chip cookies until another night this week.

White Bean and Roasted Garlic Soup

Amy requested soup for dinner last night.  Of course, I acquiesced, and thus made White Bean and Roasted Garlic Soup from Vegan With A Vengeance.  It was a little thin, even with the beans and garlic pureed (using my wonderful  immersion blender Marcus gave me for my birthday), so we added frozen mixed vegetables.  I also made a couple of other changes - I only roasted one head of garlic and not two - I thought two was a bit excessive- and I put in a half teaspoon of white vinegar instead of the lemon juice. (I keep forgetting to buy lemon juice.  I'm not sure why.)  Anyhow, I'm not sure I will make it again, but if I do, I will try two heads of garlic for sure, and of course, the lemon juice. It was quite good.

To go with the soup, I made Irish Soda Bread  from Recipes For A Small Planet-well, a recipe for it, with white whole wheat flour, using molasses  instead of honey and soured soy milk instead of yogurt AND applesauce instead of an egg.  It was rather gooey and had to be spread in the pan, but Amy liked it.  I was pleasantly surprised, because Amy is not one for liking bread all that much. All in all, I would say it was a successful supper, and we will have the leftovers for lunch today!

Seitan and Broccoli with Pantry BBQ Sauce

More goodness from  Isa Does It.  Using the Chicky Seitan recipe, I made about two pounds of seitan, all of which I used in the recipe.  The BBQ sauce is as it says, using all items that are pantry staples.  It really was very simple to rustle up, and the flavor of the seitan was really brought out by the steaming.  My son Chris, who has been vegetarian for nearly 10 years, really liked this, his first time trying seitan.  Amy and I liked it too, and I definitely want to make this again.

Vegan Cinnamon Rolls (Bread Machine)

I made these using my breadmaker on the dough setting.

Here is the recipe, altered to make it vegan:

• 1 TBSP ground flax seed + 1 cup water at room temperature (whisk until foamy, then add to bread pan first
• ¼ cup oil (I used vegetable)
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1 tsp salt
• 3½ cups flour (I used all purpose)
• 1½ tsp active dry yeast

Place ingredients in bread maker pan in order presented.  Prepare using your bread maker's dough setting.

Prepare the filling:

• 1/3 cup soft Earth Balance spread
• 1/3 cup granulated sugar
• 2 TBSP cinnamon

Mix together and let set until dough is finished.

Once the dough is finished, roll out with rolling pin until it is flat, kind of like a square pizza.  USing a flat spatula, spread the filling all over the dough as one would pizza sauce on a pizza.  Then, roll the dough up jelly roll style.  Cut the roll into small cylindrical shapes (a kitchen knife will do fine).  Next, place the cinnamon rolls on one or two flat cookie sheets to prepare for baking.

In a warm place (we heated our oven to 170º then turned it off and placed the pans inside) let the buns rise for about 45 minutes.  Once the buns have finished rising, preheat the oven to 350ºF.  Bake the cinnamon buns for 25-30 minutes.

Prepare the icing:

• ½ cup powdered sugar
• 3 TBSP almond milk
• ¼ tsp vanilla

(I doubled the recipe to make more icing)

Once the buns are finished baking, take out of oven, pour icing over them, let cool a bit, then ENJOY!

Update:
Sadly, I think 1TBSP of ground flax seed is way too much.  Also, perhaps one would do better to use bread flour.  And do NOT double the filling.  It melts and ends up really nasty.  I may try this again, but I think I will use applesauce instead of flax seed.  These were positively dreadful.

Isa Pizza, Pizza Sauce and Cashew Cheesy Cream

I got a bit adventurous tonight.  Amy wanted pizza, and I didn't want to order out, so, I got out Vegan With A Vengeance and made the pizza crust and the pizza sauce for Isa Pizza.  The recipes make enough for two pizzas, so I decided to try something.  One pizza I did up with veggies (onion, spinach, and tempeh cubes on both) and Daiya (both cheddar and mozzarella styles.  The other pizza I made the same way, EXCEPT that instead of Daiya, I used the Cheesy Cashew Cream from the Nirvana Enchilada Casserole recipe in Isa Does It.  Both pizzas were good, but I thought the second one was AMAZING.  That cashew cream is just fantastic. AND I have four slices leftover for a lunch some time this week!  It was Amy's idea to put spinach on the pizzas - we sautéed all the veggies in olive oil before putting them on the pizzas to bake.  Needless to say, these pizzas were better than ANYTHING we could have ordered elsewhere. 

Did I mention I am beginning to love cooking at home?

Everyday Pad Thai

I tried the Everyday Pad Thai recipe from Isa Does It, and it is really good!  Amazing - it tastes like restaurant food.  It really does!  It was really delicious!  I will definitely make it again.  One thing - Marcus does not care for tofu, so I could make it with seitan for him.  I left out the cilantro ad the scallions, and added an onion, sliced really thinly.  Also, I browned the tofu in peanut oil like ICM tells you to in Brooklyn Pad Thai in Vegan With A Vengeance.  I think that will be the next Pad Thai recipe I try, the Brooklyn Pad Thai.  I have a LOT of rice noodles left so definitely need to try that.  It appears to be a bit more complex.  And she does say to only cook half of the veggies/sauce/noodles/tofu at a time so the noodles don't become soggy.  I tend to avoid things like that.  But I also have some broccoli left, so ... yeah.

Fire Brigade Stuffing

Fire Brigade Stuffing 

Changes I made:  I didn't use Granny Smith apples, because I didn't have any.  I think I used Macs or some other kind of red apple.  Also, I left out the cranberries, and didn't put in quite as many slivered almonds as called for.  Additionally, I only used whole wheat and pumpernickel bread, no rye.  And, let's see, I didn't make it in a pumpkin, because there were none to be seen at the grocery store.  Bummer.  I should have gone to the produce stand yesterday for that.  But for all those changes, it still looks to be pretty good.  It sure does smell good.

I'm also making vegan mashed potatoes.  I really should make some vegan gravy, because, well, I like it.  I will make the Brussels sprouts at my mom's house.

Update:  The stuffing was horrible.  Of course, it was cold when I finally ate it.  But it was really bad.  I didn't make any Brussels sprouts because Amy had already made squash and carrots.  She didn't get the squash quite done, but the carrots were very good.  I liked how she added yellow peppers and onions to the carrots.  The mashed potatoes were better when I heated them up in the microwave.

Sweet Potato Gnocchi with Tarragon Sauce

Another recipe from Isa Does It.  I'm not tired of that book yet.  I did make so many substitutions that I'm not sure the author would recognize her recipe.  (Blasphemy, I know, but hopefully the vegan food gods will forgive me.  It's still vegan, after all)  I used twice the amount of cashews called for in the sauce.  I used canned yams instead of baked fresh sweet potatoes.  I used sparkling grape juice instead of the white wine (I really need to find some non-alcoholic wine)  Anyhow, it still tasted pretty good.  And I learned that I MUCH prefer fresh tarragon to dried.  The licorice aroma/taste is nowhere near as harsh.

In fact, I've discovered I really like fresh herbs.  They really make food taste fresher.  And they are easier to measure and much more difficult to mess up.  I will have to try my hand at growing an herb garden in the kitchen.  If I can keep the cats out of it.

Nirvana Enchilada Casserole

Even though Amy was away last night, I still cooked from Isa Does It.  Last night, I made Nirvana Enchilada Casserole .  And yes, I DID watch the video before I actually made this dish.

Fast forward to the results I got:  My blender did not break down the roasted cumin and coriander seeds as well as I would have liked.  And I ran low on tortillas.  Other than that, it came out fabulous.  The cashew cheese is amazing when it is baked on top of the casserole.  In fact, I think I prefer cashew cheese without the nutritional yeast in it.  When it's baked on top of something, it becomes really cheesey.  My mom complained about the seeds, but Chris really liked it.  I also changed up what went into the filling.  I did not use mushrooms, because Amy doesn't like them.  I used up some roasted vegetable I'd kept on hand, hoping to do something with them.  The filling was really delicious.

Vegetable Miso Soup

Another recipe from Isa Does It is a big hit with our family!  Tonight, Amy made the Vegetable Miso Soup.  Now, we didn't have any scallions or cauliflower (we used that up earlier in the week), but she added carrots and peas and tofu (seared in olive oil) and just a few drops of Sriracha, and it was delicious!

In other news, I took Moomoo the cat to the vet, because he's too thin and seems to be depressed.  The vet is trying him on a high calorie diet (only for him; the other cats are already jealous of the extra feeding time), and will see him back around December 20th to see if he's gained any weight and is feeling better.  I hope the change in diet does the trick.  Otherwise, then the vet will have to order some blood tests, which are expensive.  But can you put a price on life?

Mom and Amy do it!

We are having a fabulous ISA CHANDRA MONTH OF FOOD!!!

Saturday, I made the Roasted Red Pepper Mac and Cheese.  Tonight, we made Creamy Potato and Leek Soup AND Roasted Vegetable Romesco Sandwiches.  Man, this stuff tastes so good that it HAS to be fattening just thinking about it.  (Actually not so much, though cashews and almonds make appearances, and I used almond milk in the soup instead of water)  Amy loved the sandwiches, and amazingly enough, there is enough sauce that all we need are veggies and rolls to have this again tomorrow night.  I even have enough soup to take to work, if need be.  For breakfast, I made Chickpea Scramble and roasted potatoes which were delicious.

Chandra Malai Kofta

More goodness from Isa Does It.  This recipe took some putting together.  It is Indian-inspired, and our house smells like an Indian restaurant.  I've been cooking for the last hour.  It takes that long to put this together.  But oh boy!  Cashews in the blender with vegetable broth, shredded zucchini, and sauce that is to die for.

On a related note, I see the dietitian on November 8th.  I am not looking forward to writing down my food.  I should have done it today, but I got lazy.

Phyllo Pot Pie

I got my copy of Isa Does It a few days ago.  I've made one of the recipes already (the Meaty Beany Chili, which was featured on Post Punk Kitchen's Make It Vegan.  This is my first time cooking from Isa Does It, and, incidentally, the first time I've ever used phyllo dough in a recipe.  The only change I made was to substitute sparkling grape juice for the sherry.  Results? This tastes GREAT.  I think the next time I make this, I will use a double pie crust instead of the phyllo dough, because I like crust on my pot pie.  Otherwise, this turned out great!  It's going to lunch with me for the next two days (unless Amy sneaks into the kitchen and eats some of the leftovers).

Festo - SmartBird

RIP Spicey

We bid farewell to our pet bunny, Spicey, this past Monday.  She had never been sick a day in her life, and she went downhill really quickly.  I can't say that I was close to her, because I really didn't pick her up very often, because she hated being picked up.  She loved Chris and Marcus most, because they were unlimited sources of craisins.  I did always say, Goodbye Pretty Girl when I went off to work in the morning, and I always enjoyed feeding time in the early mornings, because she would go so nuts over whatever food I gave her.  Sunday, she wasn't quite as crazy about the food as usual, but I was busy and didn't think much of it.  When I got up Monday morning, she was splayed out on the floor, and all the food from the previous day was still there..I picked her up, which she didn't protest, and put her on a heating pad, which seemed to help a little bit.  We tried to warm her up, and at one point, she made a loud "eep" sound.  We took her to the emergency vet, who told us they don't treat rabbits.  By the time we got her home, she was gone.  Alison came over later and buried her, with me in attendance.  It was low key, but I will always remember how pretty she was, and how spirited.

Goodbye, Pretty Girl.

Lasasgne And Meaty Beany Chili

Amy did something wonderful:  she cleaned the kitchen Saturday.  I hate cooking in a filthy kitchen, and sometimes, especially if we make something pan- and bowl-intensive during the week, stuff gets piled up in the sink and on the counters, until you cannot navigate the place at all.  But Amy rose to the occasion - she cleans the kitchen and cleans and refills the cat boxes in exchange for gas money, so it works out great.  I had quite a bit of cooking I wanted to do, so it felt good to pull out my chopping knife and cutting board in a clean kitchen.  I also have The New Farm Cookbook, which I had made the melty cheeze recipe from a few nights ago and had some left over.  I was feeling lasagne, so...

I took the vegan lasagne recipe from The New Farm Cookbook, and messed with it a little bit.  In addition to the melty cheeze, I added some mozzarella flavored Daiya, which really enhanced the mouth-feel of the lasagne.  I made this last night, but since no one has been home for dinner besides me, and Amy doesn't like lasagne anyway, I have dined on it two nights in a row.  And I plan on taking some of it to lunch this week.  I'm still not so sure about the melty cheeze recipe from that cookbook - I think the nooch flavor is too heavy, and for some reason, it doesn't taste cheesy to me, even though Amy says it tastes cheesy to her.

For the church pot luck this afternoon, I made Meaty Beany Chili and Corn Muffins.  People ate up the corn muffins.  The chili was pretty good, I think I will make it again, and not use quite so much chili powder, and use green peppers instead of the golden pepper I used.  Maybe even add an extra jalapeño or two, though I really don't like my chili all that hot.  This tasted a bit too tomatoe-ey for my taste.  Maybe I should have added two TBSP maple syrup instead of just one.  I am not sure.  I did use diced tomatoes instead of tomato purée.The lentils make it "meaty" just like ICM says they will.  So, a definite keeper.  I do know one thing - the house sure smelled wonderful when we woke up this morning. (I cooked it overnight because the pot luck luncheon was directly after church at 1115.)  The corn muffins turned out practically perfect.  I just wish I had a larger lidded box to carry them in.  I will definitely make those again as well.

White Bean and Sweet Potato Burgers

White Bean and Sweet Potato Burgers

These were not all that work intensive and they are TOTALLY DELICIOUS!  Amy and I each had three of them!  And there is more left over, so we can have them again in the next few days.  I baked the sweet potatoes, and we did not brush the burgers with olive oil.  Also, I didn't have any parsley, so I left that out, and I used panko bread crumbs, which made the burgers really fine crumbed.

I especially liked mine with vegan mayo and lettuce on pita bread.  YUM!

Crusty Corn Bean Pie and Noochy Cheeze from "The Farm"

I decided to veganize the Crusty Corn Bean Pie recipe from Diet for a Small Planet, and top it with the cheese sauce recipe from The New Farm Vegetarian Cookbook.  I guess I'm just an old hippie at heart.(I remember the hippies, but was a little younger than most of them)

Anyhow, Amy says the cheez sauce smells like cheese, so that should work.   This is the first time I've made the sauce, and it is my first recipe out of the New Farm Vegetarian Cookbook.  Incidentally, this cookbook is pretty much vegan, and was one of the first vegan cookbooks to reach a wider audience.  There are recipes to make tofu, soy milk, tempeh... it's pretty amazing.  I would have to quit work and go live on a commune to be able to do all that, but I can at least try some of the recipes.  There is a minnestrone soup recipe I really want to try.